Restitution is not possible before equality – Braam Hanekom coordinator of PASSOP (People Against Suffering, Oppression and Poverty)

by · September 15, 2013

If we want justice, we need restitution. However, without equality or the victims obtaining influence, we cannot achieve restitution. In the case of immigrants who have been displaced by xenophobic violence the sad reality is that victims are often forced to forgive or forget as a prerequisite to reintegration. In their cases restitution could make reintegration impossible. Through circumstance they are forced to accept the perpetrators as their neighbors, forget their scars and pretend they are living side by side in harmony.